Mexico is looking for footwear giant Adidas to pony up after a Mexican-American designer, Willy Chavarria, working with the firm launched a shoe inspired by a traditional Indigenous sandal, authorities said on Friday.

Chavarria, who has been hailed in the United States for his work bringing Latino issues to light – including his controversial collection touching on the alleged gang members locked up at El Salvador’s notorious CECOT prison – recently dropped the “Oaxaca Slip On” shoe, a sneaker sole topped with the weave of Mexico’s huarache sandals.

Critics in Mexico argued that the shoe uses the name of the southern Mexican state, a major manufacturer of the traditional leather sandals, while Chavarria’s design is manufactured in China and Indigenous artisans received no credit or benefit from the multinational firm.

“Big companies often take products, ideas and designs from Indigenous communities,” Mexico President Claudia Sheinbaum said in her morning press conference. “We are looking at the legal part to be able to support them.”

Deputy Culture Minister Marina Nunez confirmed that Adidas had contacted Oaxacan officials to discuss “restitution to the people who were plagiarized.” The dispute is the latest by Mexico to protect its traditional designs from global fashion firms, having previously lodged complaints against Zara-owner Inditex and Louis Vuitton.

Chavarria said in a statement on Saturday that he was “deeply sorry that the shoe was appropriated in this design and not developed in direct and meaningful partnership with the Oaxacan community.”
His approach fell short of the respect the community deserved, he said, stating that his intention had always been to “honour the powerful cultural and artistic spirit of Oaxaca and its creative communities,” the statement added.

Adidas did not respond to a request for comment.

Chavarria, born in the United States to an Irish-American mother and a Mexican-American father, had told Sneaker News in a prior interview that he had intended to celebrate his cultural heritage through his work with Adidas.